Summer roof repair at Glen Oaks Community College has been a bit of a nightmare.

Contractors have uncovered more problems than were initially apparent, said Heather DeKorte, senior project architect at Soils and Materials Engineers Inc. of Grand Rapids.

DeKorte discussed the situation last week at a meeting of the Glen Oaks Board of Trustees.

The overriding problem is cracks in the weatherproofing, DeKorte said. While going after the perimeter leaks, additional leaks were found, a result of the roof being improperly installed by a subcontractor for Laurenco Systems.

Although it’s only year 18 of a 25-year warranty, so far Laurenco “hasn’t come to the table” with the money, DeKorte said.

Initial leaks have been fixed, DeKorte said, and measure were taken to drain away water from the building using more drain channels and replacing old dirt with easy-drain soil.

Another plan is to replace skylights that are no longer structurally sound, DeKorte said.

Board trustee Joni Smith questioned the wisdom of installing new skylights in a faulty roof, and suggested a long-term solution would be to work toward the second story — a topic of recent discussion, she said.

Gary Wheeler, president of Glen Oaks, said funding for a second story will take longer to procure. The skylights aren’t structurally sound enough to wait a few years, he said.

Trustee John Bippus suggested that Soils and Materials Engineers has not gone far enough with efforts.

DeKorte said the estimate was for the leaks the company was initially shown when there was no reason to expect such a far-reaching problem.

“Everything we are doing is to get the water off your roof as quickly as possible,” she said.

DeKorte suggested staff members monitor the building and document any leaks. If there are none, the problem is fixed. If more leaks become apparent, the board can make a decision about the next step.

Bippus and several other trustees encouraged administrators to take legal action against Laurenco soon.